San Miguel ready to go to battle for CURE - Ang

MANILA, Philippines - In the battle for one of the remaining available 3G frequencies, two of the largest conglomerates in the country are up against the other.

Ramon Ang, the president of diversified conglomerate San Miguel Corp., declared on Wednesday, May 23, that they, too, will bid for the 3G frequency originally assigned to Connectivity Unlimited Resource Enterprises Inc. (CURE) and which the Ayala-led Globe Telecom desperately wants.

"We will bid to win," Ang told reporters.

He said the 10-megahertz (Mhz) frequency in the 2100 bandwidth is the latest item on his acquisition wish-list.

The San Miguel group, which has been in an acquisition binge in the past years, is the newest entrant in the local telecommunication industry via units Liberty Telecommunication and Extelcom.

The country's biggest telecommunication firm, Philippine Long Distance Telephone (PLDT), has to give up all its rights and interests in CURE as part of the conditions set by the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) in approving PLDT's acquisition of third-ranked Digital Telecommunications Philippines Inc. (Digitel) in October 2011.

After delaying turning over the frequency, PLDT recently promised to surrender CURE to regulators in July. PLDT would then be left with 25 MHz total frequencies.

If San Miguel were to win CURE, it would have 10 MHz of total spectrum, putting it in equal footing as the 2nd largest telecommunications firm, Globe.

In an April press con, Globe said that it needs CURE to maintain its premium customer base. At the time Globe CEO Ernest Cu, said he would "bid aggressively" for CURE, which will be instrumental in helping the company gain market share from PLDT.

Cu has remained confident the company will beat out a possible bid from Ang's SMC. In April he pointed out that telecommunications requires massive infusions of capital and that Globe had already invested heavily in creating its network, so SMC would have to pour in more money now to compete.

Ang said his group will focus on broadband if they are not able to acquire CURE. “We would have to stay in mobile broadband which is not the biggest market in the telecoms industry. The biggest right now is SMS and voice."

"Very soon, maybe within one year, we will offer voice and SMS. We are just waiting for the auction of the 21MHz frequency band,” said Ang.

San Miguel’s telco is present in the broadband arena under the wi-tribe brand which offers WiMax (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) technology that runs on a 4G (fourth generation) platform.

Ang suggested he would be willing to follow in the footsteps of Digitel and use low prices to undercut the competition.

"There are only two business models here. Either come in and be a nice guy with hopes that they pity you and give you market share or come in with low prices and gain market share,” the executive said.

Asked about his chances to win the bid for CURE, Ang said, "We leave it up to God and through good luck for us to win...Timing is the key. But we will come to that.”

He explained that San Miguel's telco interests would be housed in one group but the details are still be ironed out. - Rappler.com

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Spooks beaten in ratings battle

19 September 2011 Last updated at 11:25 GMT Spooks returned on Sunday with its 10th and final series BBC spy drama Spooks was beaten by Downton Abbey in the battle for Sunday night's ratings, with twice as many people watching the ITV1 period drama.

An average 4.6m viewers tuned in to watch the beginning of Spooks' 10th and final series, while 9.3m saw Downton's second series opener.

A peak of 9.9m people watched the first 15 minutes of Julian Fellowes drama, overnight figures suggest.

But it lost some 1.3m viewers by the time the 90-minute episode ended.

The X Factor, which preceded the drama on ITV1, achieved an average audience of 11.5m people.

Downton Abbey - which won four Emmys on Sunday including best mini-series and best supporting actress for Dame Maggie Smith in the US - had been expected to triumph when the two shows were pitched against each other.

The first series was a ratings winner, beginning last September with a similar 9.24m viewers, peaking at 10.77m for its final episode in November.

When the BBC first announced it would be putting the spy drama up against Downton, the corporation said: "Downton and Spooks are very different shows and offer a real alternative for audiences.

"This is the last ever series of Spooks and we wanted to celebrate this and make it a special event for viewers in the Sunday 9pm slot."

Previously, Spooks had always been broadcast on a weekday and averaged around six million viewers.

Overnight figures indicate its episode on Sunday is one of its worst ratings performances since the show began in 2002.

Spooks' viewing figures have only dipped below 4.6m twice before.

But final viewing figures may increase when consolidated data from catch-up services are recorded in a week's time.

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MARIA LA DEL BARRIO AND FUTBULILITS NECK-TO-NECK BATTLE IN MEGA MANILA!

Here are the comparative Household Ratings of ABS-CBN and GMA-7 programs from August 16 to 17, 2011 based on the overnight ratings of AGB Nielsen Phils among Mega Manila households:

August 16, Tuesday

Morning:

I Witness Replay (GMA-7) 1.5%; Gising Pilipinas (ABS-CBN) 1.1%

Unang Hirit (GMA-7) 5.4%; Umagang Kay Ganda (ABS-CBN) 4.7%

Pokemon (GMA-7) 7.6%; Spongebob Squarepants (ABS-CBN) 4.5%; Mr. Bean (ABS-CBN) 4.7%

Detective Conan (GMA-7) 12.5%; Banana Split Daily Servings (ABS-CBN) 4.8%

One Piece (GMA-7) 12.8%; Slamdunk (GMA-7) 13%; Kris TV (ABS-CBN) 6.8%

Kapuso Movie Festival: Mukhang Bungo Da Coconut Nut (GMA-7) 14.9%; Showtime (ABS-CBN)
9.8%

Afternoon:

Eat Bulaga! (GMA-7) 29.5%; Happy Yipee Yehey (ABS-CBN) 6.8%

Pahiram ng Isang Ina (GMA-7) 16%; Reputasyon (ABS-CBN) 9.3%

Sinner Or Saint (GMA-7) 18.3%; Kapamilya Blockbusters: Hindi Pa Tapos ang Laban (ABS-CBN)
9.2%

Sisid (GMA-7) 20%; The Fierce Wife (ABS-CBN) 7.7%

Gourmet (GMA-7) 12.1%; I Dare You (ABS-CBN) 9.5%

Evening:

Futbolilits (GMA-7) 15.8%; Maria La Del Barrio (ABS-CBN) 14.6%

24 Oras (GMA-7) 24.6%; TV Patrol (ABS-CBN) 17.9%

Amaya (GMA-7) 27%; 100 Days To Heaven (ABS-CBN) 20.7%

Munting Heredera (GMA-7) 29.4%; Guns And Roses (ABS-CBN) 20.6%

Time of My Life (GMA-7) 25%; Minsan Lang Kita Iibigin (ABS-CBN) 25.7%

Big Thing (GMA-7) 21.6%; The Biggest Loser Pinoy Edition (ABS-CBN) 14.7%

Temptation of Wife (GMA-7) 12.3%; Pure Love (ABS-CBN) 12.6%

Saksi (GMA-7) 8.6%; SNN: Showbiz News Ngayon (ABS-CBN) 7.6%

Reporter's Notebook (GMA-7) 4.2%; Bandila (ABS-CBN) 4.5%; Patrol ng Pilipino (ABS-CBN) 2.8%;  
Music Uplate Live (ABS-CBN) 1.4%

August 17, Wednesday

Morning:
Reporter's Notebook Replay (GMA-7) 2%; Gising Pilipinas (ABS-CBN) 0.5%

Unang Hirit (GMA-7) 5%; Umagang Kay Ganda (ABS-CBN) 4.2%

Pokemon (GMA-7) 6.2%; Spongebob Squarepants (ABS-CBN) 4.9%

Detective Conan (GMA-7) 12.1%; Mr. Bean (ABS-CBN) 3.9%; Banana Split Daily Servings
(ABS-CBN) 3.6%

One Piece (GMA-7) 14.5%; Slamdunk (GMA-7) 15%; Kris TV (ABS-CBN) 6.5%

Kapuso Movie Festival: Pangako ng Kahapon (GMA-7) 13.9%; Showtime (ABS-CBN) 10.3%

Afternoon:

Eat Bulaga! (GMA-7) 29.7%; Happy Yipee Yehey (ABS-CBN) 5.6%; Reputasyon (ABS-CBN) 7.1%

Pahiram ng Isang Ina (GMA-7) 16.7%; Sinner Or Saint (GMA-7) 18.7%; Kapamilya 
Blockbusters: Isang Bala Ka Lang (ABS-CBN) 10.7%

Sisid (GMA-7) 21.8%; The Fierce Wife (ABS-CBN) 7.5%

Gourmet (GMA-7) 14.2%; I Dare You (ABS-CBN) 8.3%

Evening:

Futbolilits (GMA-7) 13.9%; Maria La Del Barrio (ABS-CBN) 13.7%

24 Oras (GMA-7) 22.2%; TV Patrol (ABS-CBN) 21.2%

Amaya (GMA-7) 26.9%; 100 Days To Heaven (ABS-CBN) 23.5%

Munting Heredera (GMA-7) 28.7%; Guns And Roses (ABS-CBN) 20.7%

Time of My Life (GMA-7) 26.2%; Minsan Lang Kita Iibigin (ABS-CBN) 26.1%

Big Thing (GMA-7) 22.6%; The Biggest Loser Pinoy Edition (ABS-CBN) 15.4%

Temptation of Wife (GMA-7) 11.3%; Pure Love (ABS-CBN) 12.7%

Saksi (GMA-7) 7.9%; SNN: Showbiz News Ngayon (ABS-CBN) 7.9%; Bandila (ABS-CBN) 4.6%

Born To Be Wild (GMA-7) 5%; Storyline (ABS-CBN) 2.8%; Music Uplate Live (ABS-CBN) 1.7%

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When Muppets battle OK Go, we all win

"As much as we’d like the Muppets Newsman to announce 'This just in, OK Go drop in with the Muppets!' and then have the guys fall from the sky on top of him (like that cow did that one time)," reads Tuesday's post on OK Go's official blog, "it’s probably best to just say it: OK GO MADE A VIDEO WITH THE MUPPETS!"

That's right, kids! The two most actively meme-pursuing acts on the Interwebs battle it out in the new video for the "Muppet Show" theme song, OK Go's contribution to the upcoming Muppet-tribute LP, "The Green LP."

As you may recall, OK Go inadvertently started its viral precedent with the charming breakout video, "Here It Goes Again," performed on treadmills. Then there's the Rube Goldberg goodness of "This Too Shall Pass," "White Knuckles" (my favorite — it features dogs and also a goat), and July's "All Is Not Lost," made in interactive goodness with dance troupe Pilobolus and Google’s Play With Chrome project.

All of the above are referenced in the new Muppet homage, as OK Go attempts to make yet another overly complicated contribution to its video library, only to be infiltrated and overthrown by Kermit, Miss Piggy, Gonzo, chickens and even those old dudes in the balcony, who assert their viral dominance gained with the 2009 comeback cover of Queen's "Bohemian Rapshody."

"The Green Album" Muppet tribute is also available, with musicians My Morning Jacket, Andrew Bird, Weezer and others joining OK Go. NPR is streaming that in its entirety on Tuesday, and you can pre-order through iTunes.

"Perhaps most exciting of all, though, OK Go and The Muppets will perform together live on the 'Tonight Show' on August 31st," adds the OK Go blog. " It’ll be like National-Be-Late-To-Work/Class-Because-You-Watched-OK-Go-on-the-Tonight-Show-on-April-28th Day but, in August instead. So make your plans now."

More viral video goodness from OK Go:

Helen A.S. Popkin goes blah blah blah about the Internet. Tell her to get a real job on Twitter and/or Facebook. Also, Google+.

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4 Pinay Maids Wage Legal Battle for Permanent HK Residency | PINOY OFW

At least four Filipino domestic workers who have been working here for more than 20 years have waged a legal battle for the Hong Kong government to grant them permanent residency.

The High Court is scheduled to hear one of the three petitions on Aug. 22, which was filed by Evangeline Vallejos, a domestic worker here since 1986.

A sample Hong Kong permanent resident smart card.
Photo credit: gov.hk

The two other petitioners are Irene Domingo and her husband Daniel, who worked here as domestic workers from 1982 to 2007 and from 1985 to 2007, respectively. Two of their three children who were born here are already permanent residents.

Josephine Gutierrez, who had been working here as a domestic worker since 1991, also filed a similar petition.

The Court is set to hear the petition of the Domingos on Oct. 18 and of Gutierrez on Oct. 26.

In their petitions filed at the Court of First Instance last December, the Filipinos asked the Court to declare them as permanent residents of this city under the Basic Law.

The Basic Law, the city’s mini-constitution, states that permanent residents include non-Chinese nationals who have “ordinarily resided in Hong Kong for a continuous period of not less than seven years and have taken Hong Kong as their place of permanent residence.”

The Filipino domestic workers also asked the court to declare as unconstitutional the Immigration Ordinance that refuses permanent residency rights to domestic helpers.

Continue reading at Philippine Star

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Stormtrooper Helmet Designer Wins Legal Battle Against George Lucas

George Lucas’ company has failed on its bid to stop a prop designer making and selling replicas of the iconic stormtrooper helmets from the Star Wars films.

Britain’s Supreme Court ruled in favor of Andrew Ainsworth, the designer who sculpted the white helmets worn by the sinister galactic warriors in the original “Star Wars” film in 1977, and now sells replica costumes, made from the original molds, over the Internet.

The court did, however, prevent him from selling them in the United States.

The U.K. court ruled there was no copyright infringement because the replicas were not works of art.

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Game Lord of the Rings : Battle for Middle Earth 2

Home » Game » Game Lord of the Rings : Battle for Middle Earth 2
Features

* Customization, Command, & Control
* Build your own landmark castle with fully customizable and upgradeable fortresses and walls.
* Create your own hero with all new customized RTS units that are your avatars in-game.
* Control battles with all-new enemy AI, melee combat, and flanking, adding unprecedented tactical fidelity
Core RTS Depth of Strategy
Master next-gen unit control with smart formations, battle lines, and planning mode.
* "Build anywhere" brings creativity and strategy to base building and battlefield dominance.
* Control the entire war with a high level "Risk" style meta-game on the Living World Map with all new strategic AI .
* Extend your battlefield with larger than life navy battles at sea

Hardware Requirements

Windows XP
Processor: 1.6 GHZ
RAM: 256MB
CD-ROM: 8x or faster DVD drive
Hard Drive: 6.0 GB or more free space
Video Card: DirectX 9.0c compatible Video card with 64 MB or more memory and one of these chipsets is required: ATI Radeon 8500 or greater; NVIDIA GeForce 3 or greater (GeForce 4 MX not supported)
Processor: DirectX 9.0c compatible sound card

Serial:ZXUL-6NLW-S3FR-5S3V-VRLD

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